Gateways: The Tell-Tale Hearts
by xdreamernumbuhfour
Summary: Sequel to Gateways: The Red Fate Kim is back again! This time on the Grandline and so much closer to home than she realizes But not all is well and she struggles yet again to understand why things happen the way they do and why her heart is so conflicted With pirates, princesses and princes on the way, she can only wonder, will she ever get home?
1. The Belly of the Beast

_My name is Kimiya Leonore. When I was child, I believe that living a life filled with adventure would be the best life possible. Now I'm seventeen, trapped in a world not my own, and living that life aboard a pirate ship crewed by headstrong adventurers. What lies ahead is my way home… or, perhaps, just more questions that need answers._

* * *

"Good job. Now break it again."

Kim was exhausted, out of breath and she felt like she was about to kill over, but she still nodded, allowing Zoro to put her in a headlock.

The pair was training again, the swordsman attempting to teach the girl a few things about hand-to-hand combat, rather than only blade techniques. Kim was a big better at this and wiggled out of Zoro's grasp as easily as a slippery eel. At the moment though, she was becoming rather irritable and her patience was running thin. The kick to Zoro's shin may or may not have been intentional.

"Sorry," she panted unconvincingly, bending over and placing her hands on her knees. "Maybe we should cool it with the training for a bit. Y'know, I think we should take up yoga instead. I'd rather you accidentally drop me rather than beat me to death every time I try to spar with you."

Usopp laughed at the girl and tossed her a towel as she trudged over to collapse between him and Sanji. "You look ready to pass out!"

"I feel ready to pass out," Kim admitted in a mutter, eyeing Zoro warily in case he decided to surprise her with an attack. If he made an attempt, she'd sic Sanji on him or throw him into Laboon's stomach acid.

Stomach acid. Eugh, the very thought was disgusting.

After barreling down Reverse Mountain's waterway, they encountered an obstacle in the form of a giant whale. Laboon to be exact. The whale nearly ruptured their eardrums with his bellowing and, after a bit of a steering accident, broke the Going Merry's figurehead. Luffy,enraged by the damage done to his favorite seat, ended up punching Laboon in the eye. Laboon swallowed the ship in retaliation, nearly drowning Luffy when the rubberman fell off deck. He was currently outside and looking for a way to rescue his friends.

Kim often wondered when her life became so strange. Probably when she was being chased by a redheaded route Robot-man

For now, though, she tried not to think too hard about the situation the crew found themselves in.

Nami, on the other hand, was frantically trying to adjust.

"Don't you guys think we ought to be putting more effort into figuring a way out of this place?!" The navigator snapped at them through gritted teeth.

"Chill, Nacchan." Kim said breezily, waving aside the older girl's concern. "Everything happens for a reason, y'know. I'm sure we've been swallowed by a good reason."

Nami stared at Kim as if she were insane. She most likely was; Kim that is – not Nami. Well, maybe Nami too. The navigator sighed in frustration, wishing her nakama were a bit more normal.

"Hey," Sanji said suddenly, lurching forward with his eyes fixated on something in the water. _Stomach acid. _Kim copied him lazily, scanning over the liquid with little interest. "There's something happening over there!"

Nami turned to look as well, Zoro and Usopp joining in a moment later to see what had captivated the crew. It was almost comical the way everyone's eyes went wide as a giant squid, larger than any animal Kim had ever seen, rose from the water. The brunette felt mildy ill at the sight of the creature, its outer skin irritated looking from the effects of the stomach acid.

Usopp made a noise similar to that of a choked chicken and latched on to Kim like a lifeline, yanking her behind Sanji for protection. The girl sighed but allowed him to use her as a backup shield against the injured animal.

"It's a giant squid!" Nami screamed, clutching at Zoro's arm. The swordsman flinched as her nails dug into his skin, but allowed her to cling to him nonetheless.

Zoro and Sanji watched unflinchingly as the squid's long tentacles shot out in an attack, both tense in preparation of a counterattack.

However, just as Zoro pushed Nami in the direction of Usopp and Kim, the squid jerked unnaturally and a harpoon burst through the soft skin of its head. With a mighty splash, the squid hit the acid, rocking the boat with the waves, and twitched once before falling still – dead.

The teenagers turned their eyes to the tiny floating island, less than 20 feet from them.

The house aboard it was tiny and looked rather empty. All the lights were off and the doors left to hang open. However, from the dark depths of the home was a long chain, made of what seemed to be steel, that ran from somewhere inside all the way to the harpoon that had killed the squid.

Kim grinned to herself and wrestled out of Usopp's grip, depositing him on Nami instead. She moved to stand with Sanji and Zoro instead, the trio gathering around the front railing to observe the events at the moment.

"That was pretty bad ass," Kim smirked, rocking back on her heels.

"Seems like there's a dangerous person here." Zoro agreed grimly, hand resting on his swords. The movement would look casual to anyone who didn't know him but it was his subtle way of preparing for battle.

"Let's _hope _it's a person," the corner of Sanji's mouth quirked up in half of a smile as he spoke. Kim considered him for a moment, then grinned. He seemed excited, eager for someone to fight. In a way, he was rather similar to Zoro. Always ready for a fight, wanting a fight to keep him entertained. It was very appealing and Kim couldn't decide if she wanted to be friendly or flirtatious with the cook the way she was with Zoro.

The next few minutes went by quickly with the appearance of Crocus the Lighthouse Keeper and his anticlimactic ways. Kim thought Sanji's mistaking him for a flower was hilarious and was overtaken with a fit of giggling as she held him back from attacking the old man. Her shoulders shook with mirth as Crocus sat down in his folding chair, ignoring the pirate crew in favor of reading his newspaper.

Sanji relaxed into her grip gradually, chest heaving and eyes blazing with anger and annoyance. Kim hummed soothingly and propped her chin up on his shoulder, winding her arms around his waist and pulling him closer. Out of the corner of her eye, Kim caught Zoro glaring at them, an absolutely disgruntled look on his face and she grinned into Sanji's neck before reaching out and pulling the swordsman into her embrace alongside Sanji.

The cook and first mate froze at the close proximity but remained silent. Kim smiled contently from between them.

Usopp stepped up to the front of the crew, putting on a brave face and trying to be intimidating. "I-if it's a fight you want, t-then you've got one!"

Kim admired his sudden flash of courage, but couldn't understand his animosity towards the old doctor. Perhaps it was just her objective perspective of him, but she rather enjoyed his personality.

"Don't," Crocus warned. "Or someone might end up dead…"

"Oh yeah," Sanji smirked darkly. "And who would that be?"

"Me." The doctor said flatly.

Sanji jerked violently in Kim's grasp but the brunette still held onto him tightly. "You bastard! I'll kill you!"

Kim laughed hysterically and Zoro reached around her to hold onto Sanji as well, sandwhiching the blond between them. He struggled for another moment then fell back against them with a huff.

"Don't get so upset," Zoro grunted, letting him go after a moment, and moved to the railing. "Hey, ossan. Would you mind telling us who you are and what this place is?"

"…. It's common courtesy to introduce yourself first." Crocus frowned.

"Oh, sorry." Zoro apologized almost polietely. "I'm Roronoa Zo–"

Crocus cut him off. "My name is Crocus and I am the Keeper of Twin Capes Lighthouse. I'm seventy-one years old, a Gemini and my blood-type is AB."

A vein throbbed at Zoro's temple and a spasm ran though his body. Kim and Sanji lunged forward as the swordsman began unsheathing his weapons. "Nobody minds if I kill him, right?!"

Kim reached up and slapped the back of his head. "I mind, you dang marimo. Get away from the railing before you bust a blood vessel."

With some help from Sanji, Kim managaed to pull the swordsman back and stepped in front of him with a smile. "I apologize for the boys' attitudes, Crocus-san. I'm Kimiya Leonore, the Chronicler of this crew, and these are my nakama – Zoro, Sanji, Nami and Usopp. That sweetheart over there is Jianyu – not quite sure what he is but it's cute. We'd be very grateful if you could tell us about what's going on. We're a little… _disoriented_ at the moment."

"You fellas might want to use her as an example for respect." Crocus grunted. "To answer your question, young man, does this look like the stomach of a _mouse_ to you? You've been swallowed by a whale."

Nami made a distressed noise. "What'll we do?! I don't want to be digested!"

"Welcome to the great Starship Grandline," Kim muttered sarcastically. "We'll put it up to a vote every five years if you want to keep living here or just forget that this is actually a whale. Thank you and have a nice day."

"The exit's over there." Crocus said simply, gesturing to a pair of giant iron doors just behind them. Kim hoped that Laboon was tranquilized when they were installed.

"There's an exit?!" Nami cried in disbelief, the boys echoing her.

Kim offered them an unimpressed look. "You guys need to be more observant." She scolded.

Usopp looked mildly ill. "We're in a whale's stomach and you've painted it to look like the outside. What kind of person are you? That's just wrong. What the heck are you doing in here anyway!"

Zoro frowned and caught the sniper by the arm, pulling the enraged sniper away from the railing. "Leave it alone, man. Let's just get out of here."

Usopp continued to look upset, but fell silent as everyone jumped to their posts. Together, they began to move the Going Merry towards the exit with Kim managing the rudder as carefully as she could, The boys brought out the oars and prepared to row but, before they could even get them in place, a great rumble shook the ship and sent them tumbling to the ground.

Kim yelped and flung herself away from the rudder, not wanting to chance throwing the ship off even further if she grabbed onto it to hold herself in place. Instead, she fell into the kitchen table, screaming out for a moment as her back hit it violently, but clung to the bolted down table.

"What the hell was that?!"

"Look guys!" Nami said suddenly, pointing at the 'island' Crocus lived on. Kim couldn't see what was happening outside the galley, but she knew that the rest of the crew had finally seen the iron lining around the bottom of the island. "It's actually a ship!"

"If we stay here any longer our ship will be dissolved!" Usopp yelped. "Hey, ossan! What's going on? Give us an explanation!"

"This whale," Crocus said grimly, "has started bashing his head against the Red Line again."

"_WHAT?!_"

"I remember now," Nami spoke up, a look of realization crossing her face. "There were scars all over the whale's head!"

"Suicidal maybe? But why? Surely there's a reason – reason for all this too. So let's ask. You've obviously been here a while – all this is your handy work after all. Painted ceilings, giant doors, a house built to withstand destruction. So, tell us, what's wrong swith the whale?" Kim finished with a flourish, quirking an eyebrow at Crocus as she exited the galley, swaying in time with the swell of the waves. "And how to we get him to stop all this madness?"

Crocus frowned at her. "Laboon – this whale – is extremely heartbroken and doing the only thing he belives he can do in order to relieve that pain. So far, I've found that nothing can tame him other than tranquilizers."

"Ever heard the phrase, 'music soothes the savage beast'?" Kim deadpanned.

"I believe that would only make things worse," Crocus said solemnly, tossing his newspaper to the side and moving to the side of his ship. "Don't be troubled by the actions of this whale. Just get out of here while you can."

With that said, Crocus leapt into the acid with dramatic flourish.

"Well," Kim said with false cheer. "That went great. Now, who else thinks that wasn't the entire truth?"

The rest of the crew raised their hands.


	2. The Tale of a Whale

After Crocus (quite literally) jumped ship, Zoro and Nami took charge of the rest of the crew, Zoro taking authority again in Luffy's absence and Nami directing them towards the doors. Kim gingerly returned to her post at steerage and guided the Merry through the acid while the boys worked to move her.

However, they didn't make it far before something odd happened (actually, odd occurrences were becoming a piece of normal day life now).

A small hatch opened just to the side of the giant iron doors and out flew two unfamiliar figures and one that the crew knew by heart.

As Mr. Nine and Vivi (under the guise of Ms. Wednesday) of Baroque Works fell flailing into Laboon's stomach acid, Luffy was flung out of the hatch behind them, arms flapping fruitlessly in an attempt to stay in the air.

"Luffy?" Zoro gaped, sagging a bit in exasperation.

"Guys!" Luffy grinned cheerfully. "You're alright! That's great! Mind helping me out?"

"Why is he such a weirdo?" Usopp moaned, leaning heavily on his oar.

"Forget it. Let's just get this over with." Zoro sighed, tossing his oar. He beckoned Kim closer and handed her his swords. The brunette offered him a look of confusion but accepted the blades, cradling them carefully. "Hold on to those for a moment. Drop them and you'll regret it. C'mon, crap-cook. Let's go save our idiot captain."

Sanji bristled and shouted at Zoro as they leapt overboard.

"Did... Zoro really give me his swords?" Kim gaped, goggling at the weapons she held. "Why the hell would he do that?!"

Usopp snickered and Nami offered the younger girl a knowing look.

"Guys do weird things when they get in that mood." the navigator said sagely, grinning a bit.

"Mood? What mood? What are you talking about?" Kim gaped.

"Oh no," Nami grinned slyly. "You've got to figure that one out on your own. It won't be any fun if I tell you."

The conversation was cut off before it could go any further with the reappearance of Zoro and Sanji, the pair dragging Luffy, Vivi and Mr. Nine behind them.

Much to the crew's surprise, Sanji wasn't the one carrying the girl in. While the cook had Luffy draped over his shoulder, Zoro was dragging Vivi and Mr. Nine along like ragdolls.

"Alright then," the swordsman grunted, tossing the Baroque Works officers against the railing and taking his swords back from Kim. The brunette wrinkled her nose at the smell of him and backed away, arm pressed against her nose to block out the odor. Nami and Usopp copied her. "Just who are you two anyways?"

"You all smell disgusting!" Kim hissed, leaning against Nami. The navigator nodded in agreement and both girls wore identical looks of disgust.

"Sorry," Zoro said, not sounding apologetic at all. "But I guess that crap does that to a guy."

"Would it kill you to take a bath before going all bad cop on these two?" Kim shot back, frowning.

Zoro's brow furrowed in annoyance but before he could snipe back at her, Crocus reappeared and confronted the two officers on deck.

While Usopp filled Luffy in on who Crocus was, Vivi and Mr. Nine pulled their guns, firing them at the walls of Laboon's stomach in a last ditch attempt at killing the whale. Kim and Luffy leapt forward together, smacking Vivi and Mr. Nine in the back of the head and sending them crashing to the deck. In an attempt to stop the attack, Crocus leapt from the platform that lead to the hatch Luffy and the others came from and the old doctor took the brunt of the shots on himself. With a grunt, he fell down into the stomach acid.

"I don't really know what's going on," Luffy huffed, glaring at Mr. Nine's prone form. "But I'm kind of pissed off!"

* * *

Once everyone was showered and smelt better, the crew bound the unconscious Baroque Works officers together with a spare coil of rope and tossed them unceremoniously onto Crocus's floating island.

The old doctor considered them and smiled. "Why don't you kids join me and I'll tell you more about this whale. He is an island whale, the largest species of whale in the world that are normal found in West Blue. His name is Laboon."

The crew grinned and rushed to anchor the Merry in place so they could hop over to Crocus's home. After a quick change of clothes, Kim allowed Zoro to help her down and together they joined the others around Crocus's lawn chair. If anyone else could have seen them, they might have looked like children gathering around a grandfather for a story.

Kim flopped down beside the little palm tree that leaned over the island and tugged Zoro and Luffy down next to her. The rubberman, however, never really concerned with someone's back story, soon turned his attentions to the tree and made attempts to climb it while Crocus spoke.

Together, the teens listened to Crocus tell them the story of Vivi and Mr. Nine, nearby townspeople looking to use Laboon as a meal ticket. Of baby Laboon and his pirate family and how they supposedly 'abandoned' him in Crocus's care before fleeing the Grandline in fear.

By the time Crocus finished with the first half of his story, Usopp and the girls were in tears and the rest of the boys had steely looks on their faces. Kim rested heavily against Zoro, curled into the swordsman's side for comfort. Luffy rejoined them about halfway through the story, drawn by the sight of Kim's tears, and had one hand tangled in her dark locks, the other gripping Nami's hand as the navigator leaned against her captain. Sanji had a hand clamped on Usopp's shoulder as the curly haired boy tried to stem his tears. Jianyu made a sad, snuffling noise and snuggled into Sanji's lap as the crew shared a moment of silence for Laboon's sad tale.

While Kim thought Laboon's story sad, she held another grief in her heart. Their stories were so similar and Kim couldn't help but wonder if her brothers would hold onto her like Laboon held onto the hope of his nakama's return. Fifty years from now, would her brothers still be waiting for her to walk through the door? Fifty years from now, would she even want to go home? Kim shuddered at the thought.

Of course she would still want to go home. They were her family and she would do anything to get back to them... right? She could only hope she would still have the same drive to get home if her stay in this world lasted longer than anticipated. Or that she would have children that could somehow continue her research and pass on a message from her if she died prematurely.

The Chronicler's face bloomed red and she hastily pulled away from the boys on either side of her. She was no stranger to relationships or things of another nature, but the thought of children, of a family in this world, that was an odd one.

Who would she even settle down with? Surely not a stranger and they never really settled down long enough in one place for her to get to know people so if she did end up having a family, it would probably end up being someone from her crew and there weren't very many for her to choose from. Her blush intensified even more.

The thought of having children with one of the Monster Trio was making her mind fizzle out because, of course it would have to be one of them. There was no ways she'd have a relationship with Brooke or Franky or Chopper (because, quite frankly, the very thought was disturbing; Brooke was a skeleton, Chopper a human-reindeer hybrid and Franky was old enough to be her dad!) and Usopp was out of the question because of his devotion to Kaya. That only left Luffy, Zoro and Sanji.

The thought of having children with such jeopardy-friendly people made her blanch. No matter how cute their kids would be.

_What the hell!_ Kim shook herself. _Why am I even thinking about this?! I'm going home. No need to think about this. Yep. No more thoughts like that. Nope. Not for me._

She dropped her head into her hands.

Who was she kidding? Now that she had considered it once, the thought would never leave her again. She was **so** doomed.

* * *

**A/N: Hello lovelies! How are you tonight?! Having a good time I hope? Good! Great! So, I've gotten a request I want to put up to you. Would you like me to reopen the pairings poll as a new one instead of sticking with the old? Let me know what you think!**

**SBS!**

**Thanks for Favoriting and Alerting: ** .18, Molly Grace 16, bloodemon2, Shiningheart of ThunderClan, constantlyklutzy, MintNight-Ly, BleachedShadow, Forbiden Light, Luvrainluv, CallmeEevee, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, xXxEmeraldBlueXxX, santa. clause. is. a. stalker., shanagi95, Mailumia, angelsoul15, Acerya, Ari-chan21, ClassDummy101, Lamashu, shadowfox2345, kogaiki62, Galymed, DemonicLightning, 707cloud, pinksnail, The Gypsy Alchemist, PurpleStarsGreenFire, musiclover3, StarPurpleandBlue, jemmagirl, terfa, Skylar Kitten, hollisterkaratekid, nya mayaha nya, wolfscry248, The Weirdo Next Door, AnneTesla, CherriRoseGirl, XxHeartMenderxX, foxchick1, CatalinaVonFeuer, Shaekyn, SilversLaw, Star Hart, **and** thakidisbac!

Molly Grace 16: **Zoro was winning last I checked!**

Shiningheart of ThunderClan: **Yes she's back alright! Glad you liked that scene!**

10th Squad 3rd Seat: **Thanks!**

pizzafan123: **Thanks!**

shanagi95: **It's the old poll still. Though, I may take you up on your suggestion.**

Galymed: **I'm sorry it took so long to get out! Ooh, good luck! (tbh, it's a guilty pleasure of mine as well!) Yes, the DW reference was intentional. I happened to be watching The Beast Below as I wrote the chapter. I adore Amy so I was watching it again!**

CherriRoseGirl: **Only Kim can mix those two together in my opinion!**

CatalinaVonFeuer: **I like putting thought into my titles~ Makes it seem... well, better! Crocus is one of my favorite older characters! In fact, most of Roger's crew is hilarious! I'd love to see a reunion of Crocus and Rayleigh and Buggy and Shanks. It would crack me up I bet! Haha, Zoro doing yoga would make my life! Now, if only we can convince him that doing yoga would help with his swordsmanship... Crocus probably fit the crew like a glove and got a kick out of messing with Buggy! At least, that's what I gathered from Episode Zero! Don't let those AP classes get you down! I'll look forward to your story!**

thakidisbac: **Just you wait, it'll get better!**


	3. The Beast Below

_A horse and a man above, below;_

_One has a plan but two must go._

_Mile after mile, above, beneath;_

_One has a smile one has teeth._

_Though the man above may say "hello",_

_Expect no love from the beast below._

* * *

After the crew and Crocus exited Laboon's stomach through the convenient hallways the doctor had installed in the whale and Ms. Wednesday and Mr. Nine were unceremoniously dumped overboard, the crew gathered once more, this time on the outcropping of rock where the Twin Capes lighthouse stood.

Kim fiddled with her pen, absentmindedly doodling in the margins of the Logbook as Usopp and Sanji argued to the side of her about Laboon's nakama. She didn't want to pay too much attention to the frankly depressing edge their little encounter had taken and instead focused on recounting their adventures in Loguetown, occasionally checking in with the others about their personal adventures in the town. Before long, they were all etched on the paper for anyone to see and Kim frowned with worry, noting that the little journal they were using was nearly full.

"You kids must have had quite a few adventures by now," Crocus said, raising his eyebrows and looking mildly impressed.

Kim preened a bit. "You could say that. And there's only more to follow!"

Crocus chuckled at her and turned to observe the others. Most of them wore pensive expressions, the curly haired lad and the blond in particular, but what most intrigued Crocus was the absence of the crew's captain. Before he could put too much thought into the disappearance of the lively young man, a great cracking sound broke through the air and an enraged yell had everyone staring at Luffy as he raced towards Laboon, the broken mast in hand.

To their credit, the crew reacted very casually to the sight, the girls simply sighing in exasperation while the boys scolded the young captain about the damage to the ship.

"Take your eyes off him for one minute…" Sanji scoffed, lighting himself another cigarette. Crocus frowned at him and the offending article (the old man was a doctor after all and he didn't enjoy watching others toss their health aside so easily) but the blond ignored him with practiced ease.

"It's like babysitting with no pay," Zoro groaned, slouching into the chair beside Kim.

The young Chronicler arched an eyebrow at him and smirked. "Sounds more like parenting to me." She looked uncomfortable the moment the words left her lips and turned back to her work in silence. The swordsman failed to notice the sudden awkwardness that had overtaken her and continued to watch his captain make a fool of himself by stabbing Laboon with the rough part of the mast.

Crocus admired Kim's persistent attempts at ignoring the debacle in front of her but wondered where the hell her common sense had gone. Was it normal for people to be so uncaring to their friends' wellbeing nowadays? The doctor wondered how devoted she really was to the crew and frowned at her disapprovingly when the captain was thrown off of Laboon and into the lighthouse.

"Shouldn't you be more concerned for your captain?!" Crocus snapped, causing Kim to raise her head and regard him in astonishment.

"Pardon me?" she gawked. "I'll have you refrain from criticizing me like that! Luffy can take care of himself and he doesn't need me worrying over him all the time like a mother hen! Dammit, I'm his chronicler, not his mother! Honestly, the one time I don't look up while he's being stupid and I get chewed out for it!"

"Luffy is a rubberman," Nami explained, mildly relieved now that Luffy was up and shaking the attack off like it was nothing. "He can't die so easily."

Crocus gaped at the rubberman and his speech, listening with a lighter heart as Luffy declared himself Laboon's rival and promised to return in order to finish the fight he had started. A strange method but effective given Laboon's noticeably happier disposition.

The brunette at the table finally lifted her head when Laboon bellowed his delight at having a new goal to look forward to and she grinned along with the rest of the crew, leaning a bit on the swordsman at her side.

* * *

"So, are you ever going to tell me the real reason you were in that Marine base or not?" Kim drawled lazily as Zoro moved to return to the ship. The swordsman froze. "Because, y'know, I've got to put something in the Logbook and I'm sure whatever you tell me'll be good to laugh at."

"Have you been taking lessons in demonic blackmail from Nami?" Zoro demanded, scowling as he sat back down.

Kim grinned at him infuriatingly. "Nope!" she said cheerfully, popping the 'p'. "I only take lessons from the best in 'How to Get on Zoro's Nerves and Still Get What I Want'. Luffy's my teacher."

Zoro's scowl deepened and a glare was thrown into the mix. "Gaki."

"Ah, there's a name I haven't heard in a while!" Kim cried dramatically, pretending to swoon in her seat. "I've missed your oh-so charming ways and eloquent declarations of divine intellect."

"Kim."

"Yeah, yeah, alright ya' boring old man. Seriously, the faster you get the story across the faster I'll let you go so I can share the dirt with Sanji and Nami. I need more allies in teasing you and they're the only ones who would actually join me without fear of recompense."

"What are you, a Victorian woman?" Zoro shot back.

"Ohh, witty. I like it. Your skills are about as well-practiced as Luffy's artistic ability." Kim glanced at the frighteningly terrible Jolly Roger the captain had painted on Laboon as if in reminder. "Anyways, story time! Do tell how you, Roronoa Zoro the Pirate Hunter and oh-fierce one of the seas, became a measly chore boy in a Marine base."

Kim, of course, knew the entire story by heart, but took great delight in forcing it out of Zoro as potential blackmail material. She wouldn't share it with Nami or Sanji as she had previously said, but it would make great for threats against the swordsman should she ever want something from him. The only thing that would be better would be Zoro's adventures in babysitting at Water Seven. Kim's grin turned positively wicked at the thought and Zoro scooted away from her slightly.

From across the table, Nami made a distressed noise which quickly turned into a full-blown scream of terror. Zoro leapt to his feet, swords drawn and ready to attack. Kim reached up and yanked him back into his seat, earning herself a snarl from the swordsman.

"What the hell Kim?"

The brunette met him with a serene expression, but her eyes promised pain if he didn't shut up and listen to her. "There's nothing wrong. Nami's just getting a reality check." The brunette turned to the older girl with a serious expression. "Nacchan. Breathe."

The navigator sucked in a quick breath. "Guys," she stuttered, looking as if the world were about to end. "The compass! It's broken! It's pointing all over the place."

Luffy frowned and bounced over, a grumpy Usopp in tow, and peered over her shoulder at the wildly spinning compass. "Weird." The rubberman commented, not sounding at all worried. Nami punched him.

"Uh, that doesn't look too good." Usopp whispered hesitantly.

Kim rolled her eyes and swiped the compass from the table. "I wouldn't worry about it too much, guys. It's the Grand line's doing. The regular way of doing things isn't going to work here. It's like Wonderland and nothing works quite right. Most of the stuff'll be the same but sometimes cats are gonna smile at you when you didn't think they could. There's a magnetic anomaly here caused by the high levels of minerals each island has or something like that. And the winds are insane too. In addition to that, each island has a particular climate that is unrelated to the surrounding islands, giving them the impressions of being their own worlds in a sense. Sorry for not explaining this earlier, but I had a feeling none of you would believe me until you saw it for yourselves."

"I'd believe you, Kim-chwan." Sanji grinned as he set down the multitude of plates he carried with a flourish. The smell of Blue Fin Tuna cooked to perfection floated around the table, making mouths water. Luffy flung himself into a seat, snatching up the offered dish and starting on stuffing his face. The rest of the crew took their meals with a more civilized manner and set about enjoying their meal while Crocus explained the advantages of having a Log Pose on hand. After Luffy was sufficiently beaten by Nami for having a Log Pose and not telling her (to be fair he'd only picked up a few minutes beforehand), the red head turned her anger on Kim.

The brunette blinked owlishly as the older girl chewed her out for withholding important information and warned her not to do it again.

"Nami," Kim said with a deceptive amount of seriousness. "I enjoy watching you get flustered. It's a secret turn-on for me and I just can't hide it any longer."

An awkward silence fell over the crew and Kim cheered silently. Her plan worked wonderfully and Nami dropped the lecture, choosing to pick at her food instead. Kim munched on her own happily.

For a while, things seemed to be going as well as they could. However, being that it was a StrawHat pirate lunch, it didn't take long for chaos to descend upon them and, as expected, some of the boys ended up getting into a fight with each other. While Zoro and Sanji snapped at each other and tussled across the table, Nami, Usopp and Kim ignored them with practiced skill, ducking whenever a stray leg or sword came their way and slapping rubber fingers when they got too close. Crocus watched the young crew with a nostalgic expression and threatened to surgically remove Luffy's fingers if he didn't stop trying to steal his food. The rubberman kept his efforts centered on Usopp and Kim in particular after that, having learned from experience not to mess with an eating Nami or Jianyu. Both were equally capable of biting his hands off and he didn't know who to be more frightened of.

With two fighting teenagers and a multitude of rubber limbs flying around, it wasn't long before something got broken and, unfortunately for the boys, it happened to be Nami's precious new Log Pose. Kim wasn't sure which one of them was truly in the fault but watched sympathetically as all three – Zoro, Sanji and Luffy – were all kicked violently into the ocean. She was quite glad she wasn't included in that particular group and shared her sentiments with an equally grateful Usopp.

By the time they dragged themselves out of the water, they had a pair of familiar faces clinging to them. Zoro carried Luffy back to the table in a fireman's lift and Sanji carried Ms. Wednesday in a more gentlemanly manner, treating her like a princess (which she was). Mr. Nine trailed after them with a sour expression.

"I, uh, have a favor to ask." The wannabe-king muttered, looking as if he'd rather be anywhere else. The crew regarded him with mild surprise and interest. "Ms. Wednesday and I require assistance in returning to Whiskey Peak. We were supposed to be back ages ago but the time just got away from us…"

After a sufficient amount of groveling on the Baroque Works officers and some psychological manipulation on Nami's part the pair was given permission from Luffy to travel with the crew as far as their town. Crocus made a half-hearted attempt to change their mind, convinced that Ms. Wednesday and Mr. Nine were nothing but trouble, but Luffy's happy-go-lucky demeanor and laid back attitude put any worries from the old doctor's mind.

Once the crew was all packed up and everyone settled in on the Going Merry, Luffy draped himself over the railing to wave good-bye to Laboon and Crocus, reaffirming his promise to return to fight Laboon. The rest of the crew offered out a few words of their own before wandering over to their usual hangouts, settling into their everyday life while Ms. Wednesday and Mr. Nine hovered awkwardly in a corner.

Behind them, the cheerful bellow of a whale rang out like a notice:

The StrawHat pirates had entered the Grandline.

* * *

_In bed above we're deep asleep,_

_While greater love lies further deep._

_This dream must end, this world must know_

_We all depend on the beast below._

_– Doctor Who, "The Beast Below"_

* * *

**A/N: I went to the state fair today. It wasn't as fun as I expected. Did I mention that I was gonna draw any scenes requested from GtRF? Because I am. They'll be on the blog if anyone's interested…**

**SBS!**

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10th Squad 3rd Seat: **They really are!**

Molly Grace 16: **Thanks! Yes, she can flirt with the best of them but will never realize it if others have an interest in her.**

Shiningheart of ThunderClan: **Aha, someone should replace all the pants in his wardrobe. I'd be sure to put a note on the poll about where they stood before. I don't even think it said what he did with his swords at that point...**

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kenegi: **I was always fond of the direct approach.**

Galymed: **Mhmm!** **All about the romance this one is! Sort of. Probably.**

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The Liesmith: **Haha! Glad you found your way here!**


	4. Of Ice and Men

Kim shivered as she stepped out on deck, her breath coming out as puffs of white mist. The snow crunched beneath her boots as the young Chronicler carefully made her way over to the railing. Along the way, she dropped a heavy coat on Luffy's head, the rubberman in deep concentration regarding the snowman he was building. It was an odd sight, considering that they were in the middle of the ocean. Kim didn't know much about snow, but she didn't think it would be falling this heavily under normal circumstances. On a normal ocean. In a normal world.

She hustled away quickly once Luffy and Usopp began arguing about who had the better snowman (snow queen in Usopp's case).

Zoro woke with a grunt as the brunette sidled up beside him, tucking herself under his arm and snuggling up to his warmth.

"You're gonna freeze to death." Kim scolded. Zoro arched an eyebrow at her.

"I'm not weak. A little cold weather isn't going to hurt me." the swordsman said casually, brushing off her concern lightly.

Kim frowned. "What does strength have to do with freezing to death?" She unwrapped the blanket she had draped around her shoulders, wincing at the sudden blast of icy air, and wrapped it around Zoro instead. The swordsman rolled his eyes at her mothering manner and dragged her under the blanket with him. Kim went with little protest and grinned contently into his shoulder.

Inside the galley, Nami sat by the window, observing the others outside.

"Jeez," the navigator grumbled, clutching Jianyu to her tightly, the little Chimera a vital source of heat. "How can they be so happy out there? Especially when it's so cold! And look at those two! That whole, 'we like each other but we're not going to say it' attitude drives me nuts! I wish one of them would just say something already!"

"Aren't you being a little too carefree?!" Ms. Wednesday demanded from her place at the table, piled under a multitude of blankets with her partner. "Instead of complaining about your friends' love life, shouldn't you be paying more attention to navigating?! The Grandline isn't a playground you know!"

As if to back up her words, a flash of lightning lit the sky, quickly followed by a boom of thunder that rattled the windows.

Nami rushed over to check the Log Pose and let out a terrible scream when she realized that the ship had been completely turned around.

Zoro jerked in surprise, automatically on alert for any attacks and Kim frowned at the loss of warmth.

"Nami?" Luffy squinted at the galley doorway where Nami stood, pale as a ghost and looking as if she'd just witnessed a murder.

"Quickly!" she cried. "Turn the ship around one-hundred and eighty degrees! The ship has turned itself around! I looked away from the Log Pose for only a second since the waves were so calm. This is the Grand line's first display of trickery! From now on, we can't trust anything! _And would you two get out there and help?!_"

The last part of Nami's rant was directed toward Mr. Nine and Ms. Wednesday. The Baroque Works officers were, quite literally, kicked out of out the galley and onto the deck with the rest of the crew.

"Oww," they moaned.

"Kim! Get in here and get on the rudder! The rest of you catch the wind on the right side! We can use it to turn the ship left one-hundred and eighty degrees! Usopp! Take Sanji and man the jib sail! Zoro! Luffy! You know what to do! And you two! Start shoveling the snow so we don't have any accidents!"

* * *

Hours later, the crew and the officer pair were sprawled out on deck, muscles aching and struggling to catch their breath.

Kim whimpered as she flexed her sore fingers, the appendages cramped from her hours of holding the rudder in place and a few splinters in her once smooth skin.

"I thought I was going to die," Nami moaned, voice hoarse from shouting so many orders.

Luffy, the only one who wasn't completely knackered, patted her on the shoulder, grinning widely. "Nah, you did good, Nami! Best navigating I've ever seen!"

The navigator preened under the praise and settled back for a well deserved nap. On her other side, Zoro sat up, biting back a groan and frowning at Mr. Nine and Ms. Wednesday. "By the way, why're you two on our ship?"

Everyone groaned loudly in exasperation.

"You just now noticed?" Kim lamented, offering her swordsman a strange look. "We're givin' them a lift home."

"Why?" Zoro asked, cocking an eyebrow. "We're not obligated to or anything."

"I know." Luffy said simply.

Zoro left it at that, trusting his captain's judgment, and moved to crouch before the unfamiliar pair, an evil grin on his face. "Y'know, there's something weird about you two. What are your names again?"

"M-Mr. Nine..."

"And I'm Ms. Wednesday..."

"Hn. Something's been bugging me about those. Feels like I've heard them before... In any case -"

Kim aimed a kick at Zoro's boot, wanting to stop him before he made the premature connection to Baroque Works. "You blockhead! Is this really the time to go on with your paranoia? S'not like they'll be here much longer. Look, there's the island now."

The crew swung around collectively to stare at the approaching landmass, gaping at the giant 'cacti' that dominated the view.

"The first leg of our journey," Nami grinned. "Is over!"

"It's Whiskey Peak!" Luffy cheered, catapulting himself onto the Merry-go's figure head. The rest of the crew followed with slightly pained groans, but Kim remained sprawled on deck, not wanting to push herself to her feet and cause more damage to her hands.

"Are you gonna come look or what?" Zoro asked shrewdly, nudging her with his foot.

"No. I'm going to stay here and die." Kim said flatly. A moment later, she let out a quiet scream, flinging her arms around Zoro's neck as the swordsman stooped and swept her up in his arms. "W-What are you doing?" she spluttered.

"Your hands. It's not a good idea to leave those splinters in them." With that said, Zoro deposited her on the counter in the bathroom and began rummaging around for the first aid kit.

Kim tipped her head to the side, considering the swordsman as he started to remove the splinters, hands working with ease as they handled the tiny pair of tweezers. When he was done, he slathered her hands with some strange smelling ointment that Kim thought might be the equivalent of Neosporin and wrapped a few layers of gauze around them.

The Chronicler thought that once he was finished, Zoro would move away, out of her personal space. The swordsman, however, had a different idea and decided to linger for a moment, fingers tracing patterns against the back of Kim's wrist and his pale grey eyes locked on her golden ones. When he failed to move away and held her gaze instead, Kim flushed, the tips of her ears going red and she looked away nervously. After a moment, Zoro dropped his gaze as well, smirking slightly.

"I knew it," he chuckled under his breath, standing abruptly and briefly pressing his face into Kim's hair before turning and strolling out of the bathroom.

Kim gaped at his retreating figure, one hand rising to touch the place where Zoro's face met her hair, the girl's face flaming.

* * *

**A/N: Horohorohoro, and the romance kicks up a bit. I've decided to redo the poll once I've counted up all the review votes from GtRF; though, I have a pretty good idea of who'll be pressing first this time. On another note, I swear it was blistering summer yesterday and now it's freezing. I'm not happy with the weather at the moment.**

**SBS!**

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Molly Grace 16**: *bows* Why thank you! I try to make everyone in the crew feel equally uncomfortable in Kim's presence. I thought everyone would get a kick out of that part!**

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Silver Hydrangea**: There's plenty more to come! Trust me!**

Shiningheart of ThunderClan**: How about both of them? Actually, I'm not sure if Kim was acting there... She's kind of taken on a personality of her own so I really don't know what to expect of her anymore... Either way, it certainly worked out for her!**

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shanagi95**: Was this chapter enough? Or should I add more? (There's always room for more fluff.)**

angelrider13**: Yes! Absolutely!**


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